Nuno calls on struggling Wolves to end difficult spell against Arsenal

Nuno Espirito Santo has called on his under-performing players to “transform their words and feelings into actions” and stop the rot at Wolves.

The Molineux club have not won in the Premier League for eight matches, and they host Arsenal on Tuesday evening having slipped to an alarming 14th place in the division.

Following their disappointing 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace on Saturday, head coach Nuno revealed he challenged his squad to get out of their slump.

The Wolves boss said: “What was said is private, but I can share with you that it is a common feeling that everyone must improve. It has to start with the individual and then we will improve with the team.

“The dialogue was positive and sharing our feelings is positive, but then we have to transform that into action, and that is what we want to do tomorrow; transforming the feelings, the words into actions.

“We have not had much time on the training ground, due to the short turnaround between games, but we addressed the problems, and we are trying to find the solutions to raise our standards and be able to perform again.

“Going through a bad period can happen to anyone, and it is how you react to it and how you bounce back, and we are committed to reacting to improve and to bounce back from what is happening to us now.”

One positive from Wolves’ defeat at Selhurst Park was the full debut of Willian Jose following his arrival on loan from Real Sociedad.

There will be immediate pressure on the Brazilian to get among the goals with Raul Jimenez still sidelined after he suffered a fractured skull at Arsenal in November. Wolves have won just one league match in Jimenez’s absence.

“I believe that Willian still has things to recognise inside the dynamic of the team but he is a talented player and he can be really helpful for us,” added Nuno.

“When you don’t have the pre-season, as is the case of Willian, it is about recognising what his knowledge of the game is and how you can take an immediate advantage of it.

“He is a wonderful guy and a person that is willing to listen to his team-mates, to us and himself. There are some barriers to overcome but we will do it together.”

In contrast to Wolves’ poor form, Arsenal have enjoyed something of a resurgence following a bad run which threatened to cost manager Mikel Arteta his job.

Nuno, who said he does not expect any new faces to join Wolves on deadline day, added: “They have a good squad with talented players.

“Like all the teams in this league, everyone has faced problems and tough situations and Arsenal have dealt with them really well and they are performing very well. They have been able to bounce back will so we expect a tough match tomorrow.”